


Handwritten

by ZsforSs



Category: Star Wars: Thrawn Ascendancy Trilogy - Timothy Zahn, Star Wars: Thrawn Series - Timothy Zahn (2017)
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/M, M/M, References to Outbound Flight, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Thranto is endgame ship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-07
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-12 21:20:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,829
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29890698
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZsforSs/pseuds/ZsforSs
Summary: Eli Vanto was born with an indecipherably tiny line of text on his left palm, just below the base of his fingers.His parents were at first excited that he, like them, would know the joy of having a perfect match.As Eli grew and the indecipherable lettering on his hand got larger- but no more legible- they got worried.
Relationships: Ar'alani/Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo, Thrawn | Mitth'raw'nuruodo/Eli Vanto
Comments: 12
Kudos: 41





	Handwritten

**Author's Note:**

> So I started writing this thinking there wasn't a Thranto soulmate AU, but then I realized there was, and I'm pretty sure I read it.
> 
> But I don't remember it beyond that so I'm going to put down any similarities to the tropes of the genre.

He was nearly fully grown when the name appeared. This in itself is not so strange. Age gaps in relationships were not uncommon- though Thrawn had, at his age, been expecting to never have a soulmark. Most Chiss didn't.

The mark was in an odd place. Usually marks were located on the torso. There was even an old Chiss saying about soulmates either loving with their hips or their hearts-in reference to the most common locations for marks. Thrawn's mark was written in thin delicate script along the upper edge of his palm, just below the base of his fingers, on his right hand. But even that was not the strangest thing about the mark.

“You actually have a mark?” Ziara asked. “I didn't think you were the romantic type.”

“Having a soulmate has nothing to do with how 'romantic' someone is.” Thrawn protested. “It's random chance.”

He was perhaps a bit annoyed that Ziara was complaining about his lack of romance while in bed with him- but then she laughed and laid her head on his shoulder, just teasing him then. That was alright. Ziara teased because she liked him, after all, not because she resented him.

“Can I see?” she asked.

If she were anyone else he would have said no. He hasn't even shown Thrass the name on his palm. But he offered Ziara his hand and let her tilt it so she can see.

Perhaps he was tired of carrying this particular secret alone.  
  
“...That's not Cheunh.” she said almost immediately.

“No it isn't.”

She didn't say anything else, just gently laid his hand palm down on his chest. His fingers curled immediately, instinctively, around his soulmate's name.

She kissed his cheek and then his lips when he turned his face to her. They did not discuss soulmates again.

He appreciated her discretion, that she did not say what they both knew.

Having a soulmate doesn't mean you'll even meet them. He will never know more of his perfect match than the shape of their name.

* * *

Eli Vanto was born with an indecipherably tiny line of text on his left palm, just below the base of his fingers.

His parents were at first excited that he, like them, would know the joy of having a perfect match.

As Eli grew and the indecipherable lettering on his hand got larger- but no more legible- they got worried.

It never really bothered Eli.

When he was little he sometimes wondered where his soulmate was, what type of alien they were... It was kind of exciting being attached to mysterious alien- like he had an adventure waiting for him somewhere.

When he was 12 he went on a deep dive, scouring the Holonet for every know writing system he could find... and turned up nothing.

A year later Bethan Blaylock asked him to the Harvest Dance, and Eli resolved not to worry about the name on his palm, He'd find them eventually or he wouldn't.

Besides, being soulmates didn't mean you had to get married or anything- sometimes soulmates were just really good friends.

As his teen years- and puberty- progressed, having a soulmate became not much more than a convenient way for him to break up with people once he got bored.

 _That_ stopped abruptly when he caught his boyfriend of a whole entire year cheating on him with his _former_ best friend.

“What do you care?” his now ex boyfriend had said. “It's not like we're soulmates.”

He'd quit dating for a while after that.

Eli had never realized how focused his parents were on seeing him settle down with someone nice until he wasn't looking for someone. They fussed and asked awkward questions about when he was going to start dating again- it drove him crazy.

Even _after_ he joined the Navy they'd just been excited he was 'getting out there,' like joining the military was a form of speed-dating or something. (The 'so you can settle down and give us grandchildren' was only implied at least.)

Eli tried not to let it bother him. Once he was off Lysatra he'd have time to figure out what he wanted to do. If actually meeting his soulmate was in the cards for him he would. And if it wasn't that wasn't surprising, the Galaxy was a big place after all.

* * *

“This is ridiculous.” Thalias grumbled. “Sending you all the way across the Galaxy- for what??”

Ar'alani was inclined to agree. She also had questions, questions she was going to have to ask in far too public a setting.

“I will do as the council demands.” Thrawn said simply.

Had the council demanded it though? Or had Thrawn suggested his own exile? She'd seen Ba'kif's face when the orders had been given.

Did he know the same secret she did?

“Thrawn,” she said, cutting off Thalias' continued complaints. She'd been ordered to stay back on Csilla while the Springhawk took its former Captain to his exile. She didn't know if she would ever see him again. And she needed to know. “is it because of your mark?”

“You have a soulmark?” Thalias asked.

He'd been so excited by the humans he'd found, Ar'alani recalled. More than was usual even for him. She hadn't understood, not until she had seen one of them-the woman- writing something down, and had recognized the symbols.

Thrawn had been closed off since the verdict, but now he shut down completely. He was upset with her- maybe she should have asked Thalias to leave...

But she had no time, and she was not going to send him off into the unknown until she was sure he wasn't going to do anything too stupid.

“The council has decided on a course of action that will best serve the Ascendancy,” he said. “I will do all in my power to see my mission to completion.” It was a boilerplate answer and she realized probably all the answer she was going to get.

She let out a breath- soft enough it wasn't a sigh. “I know you will. Warrior's fortune be with you.”

* * *

Fate must be playing a trick on him. That or this was a truly breathtaking coincidence.

What were the odds that now, after finally being picked up by an Imperial ship that the only person on board who spoke Sy Bisti was _Eli Vanto_.  
  
His soulmate.

He'd kept his hands closed as he was cuffed, and kept them closed now as well. As much as he wanted to ask where his own name was on Eli, he was still in a precarious situation. He might not survive this upcoming meeting with the Emperor or he may wind up imprisoned somewhere where he would never see Eli again.

So he would wait. Until it was safe. And until he knew what kind of person Eli Vanto was.

“You seem amused.”

“Amused?”

* * *

Thrawn- pardon- _Mitth'raw'nuruodo_ was the most ridiculous infuriating person Eli had ever met.

And then on top of that he had the gall to be really, just unfairly attractive.

Eli was going to strangle him.

He wasn't going to strangle him, he'd just last night made sure he didn't get beaten to bloody pulp by their fellow cadets. Made no sense to try to off him now.

Not even if he was doing shirtless push ups on the floor, trapping Eli on his bed with his morning wood and a spectacular view of Thrawn's rippling back muscles...

Eli groaned, and rubbed at his eyes.

“Are you alright?” Thrawn asked. “Your knuckles look swollen.”

He didn't sound like he was bobbing up and down anymore and when Eli pulled his hands away from his face he found Thrawn was now standing and regarding him carefully.

“They're fine.” Eli said. “Just sore.”

“May I see?”

He sighed and climbed down out of bed so Thrawn could look at his hands without craning his neck.

Thrawn- who still didn't have a shirt- on carefully examined his hands, first the right, then the left. He massaged Eli's knuckles and checked his thumbs and palms for injuries while Eli flushed and stared pointedly over at the refresher door, not at Thrawn.

Then Thrawn ran his thumb softly over the name written on Eli's left palm.

His attention snapped back to Thrawn.

“Oh right,” he said. “You probably haven't seen that before.”

“I have not.” Thrawn was staring down at his hand in fascination.

Did he maybe...

“I don't suppose you know what it says?”

“I do.”

It took a few seconds for Thrawn's answer to really sink in. Once it did it took Eli another long moment to calm down enough to put his thoughts in order and asked. “What's it say?”

“Perhaps you can first tell me what this says?” he said.

Eli was briefly annoyed Thrawn was making him barter for his soulmate's name- but then Thrawn just held up his hand- his hand with Eli's name _right there_ , written across the top of his palm, mirror image of the name, _Thrawn's name_ , on his own hand.

“You.... you _asshole!_ You knew this whole fucking time didn't you?” Eli asked.

As he spoke he reached out without considering why and pressed his left hand against Thrawn's right.

Thrawn's hands were rough, and larger all around than his own, but, if he thread their fingers together just so then their marks lined up perfectly.

“I am sorry,” Thrawn said. “I was not sure how my initial meeting with the Emperor would go, it seemed unfair to tell you knowing I might not see you again.”

“And after that?”

“I thought it best to wait until you didn't hate me to broach the subject.”

“I didn't _hate_ you,” Eli protested. “It's annoying to be dragged away from my plans without any input _Mitth'raw'nuruodo._ And if we're going to be doing anything else besides holding hands I expect to be _informed before and have a say in_ whatever plans you have for me. ...You do want to do things besides hold hands right?”

Thrawn squeezed his hand. “Yes.”

“Then is there anything you need to tell me?”

“Deenlark indicated the last time we spoke that it was likely I would be placed in an entry level bridge position on a small ship patrolling the Mid Rim. I had planned to suggest you be stationed somewhere similar as your grasp of multiple trade languages would be useful.”

“By 'somewhere similar' you mean _with you_.”

“I was not going to suggest that directly, but yes I believe that would have been the outcome, yes.”

Eli rolled his eyes. “You know if we register as soulmates they'll just always post us together right?”

“....I did not.”

“Yeah there's a _huge_ productivity boost when you let soulmates work together I've seen the numbers. We'll have to fill out the paperwork.”

He reached out and took Thrawn's other hand. “Now are you going to kiss me or not?”

He didn't have to ask twice.

**Author's Note:**

> I've been having a touch of writer's block so this is just a quick little fic to get the juices flowing.
> 
> That said I did have to stop this fic here because I feel like an Eli who was all-in on Thrawn's "make the Empire a better place from within" plan would have ideas that would take this fic off on a really AU road.


End file.
